Medical personnel frequently perform intubation of the trachea with an endotracheal tube. Tracheal intubation is frequently performed in critically injured, ill or anesthetized patients to facilitate ventilation of the lungs, including mechanical ventilation, and to prevent the possibility of asphyxiation or airway obstruction. Tracheal intubation typically includes the placement of a flexible plastic tube into the trachea (windpipe) to maintain an open airway or to serve as a conduit through which to administer certain drugs. Because it is an invasive and uncomfortable medical procedure, intubation is usually performed after administration of general anesthesia and a neuromuscular-blocking drug, which typically require the patient to not have a full-stomach.
In certain situations, such as emergency situations, the medical personnel will not know if the patient has a full-stomach. In such situations, the medical personnel use procedures to minimize the possibility of regurgitation and pulmonary aspiration of gastric contents during the induction of general anesthesia and subsequent tracheal intubation. Regurgitation and pulmonary aspiration of gastric contents can cause severe inflammation of the lungs and consequently, can be fatal. One method to reduce this risk is to secure the airway by employing a rapid sequence intubation (RSI) technique utilizing general anesthesia medications. One key feature of RSI is the application of manual force or pressure to the neck region, particularly the cricoid cartilage, often referred to as the “Sellick maneuver”, prior to instrumentation of the airway and intubation of the trachea. Applying the necessary force causes the esophagus to occlude while still keeping the airway open.
However, too much or too little force may put the patient at risk. Too much force may damage the trachea or other surrounding anatomical structures or may result in inadequate patient ventilation. Too little force may undermine the efficacy of the procedure by failing to occlude the esophagus and prevent aspiration of gastric contents. Because of the importance of the amount of force, the person applying the pressure must know how to do so properly. Even a trained medic, however, cannot always apply and maintain the proper pressure without some method of monitoring the force being applied.
In addition to pressure-related difficulties arising in connection with medical personnel applying the appropriate amount of pressure on patients during a procedure, in certain medical situations, pressure-related difficulties may arise from patients developing ulcers from the application of prolonged pressure on regions of bony prominence. Pressure ulcers are typically lesions caused by unrelieved pressure that results in damage to underlying tissue. If pressure is applied to the region of bony prominence, and if the pressure is maintained for a prolonged period of time, this pressure can lead to breaking of the person's skin, reduced blood flow to the skin, surface and subsurface tissue and necrosis of epithelial tissue. These pressure ulcers can develop, for example, in persons who are bed-ridden or confined to a wheelchair. Current techniques for reducing the risk of ulcer formation range from diligent nursing protocols for ensuring patients are moved periodically, to equipments such as overlays, mattresses, specialized beds and complicated pressure monitoring systems designed to limit pressure on certain portions of the human body.